Party Girl Costumes

Parent contacts for party girls: Shari Walter, 758-6922 (home) or 400-1946 (cell) and Liz Sheridan, 792-8862 (home) or 400-9507 (cell).

You need to supply:
1. plain pink tights that completely cover the foot (no bows, ribbing, or patterns)
2. pink ballet shoes
3. leotard to wear under the dress and backstage (For most dresses just about any short-sleeved or sleeveless leotard is fine; if your daughter has a sleeveless dress she'll need a sleeveless leo. If you don't have one, ask---some of the older girls donate leos they've outgrown.)
4. hair ribbon to match dress color; for dark-haired girls wearing dresses with white or cream collars, you can match the color of the collar instead of the dress if that looks better
5. wrapped gift box with removable wrapped top; stuffed animal or doll inside. Also write your daughter's name inside the box.
 

Rest of costume is provided:
dress
white pantaloons
 
     Costume fee: $25, payable to Hanneke Lohse (give check to Shari or Liz)
 

Dressing for the performance:
     Preparing the hair is time-consuming. Ideally the hair should be done before your child arrives at the theater. If you want the backstage parents to help with the hair, you need to warn them in advance and also plan to arrive an hour and a half before the show starts with your comb/brush, hair tie, and curlers. The hair from in front of the ears is pulled into a pony tail on top of the head, leaving the rest of the hair hanging loose. Then all of it (the hair in the pony tail and the free part) is curled into corkscrew curls. Many people do this by wetting the hair and wrapping sections of it into foam curlers. (You can get the curlers at Long's.) Blow-dry the hair or let it air-dry; then hold each curl of hair in your hand as you remove the curler and hairspray it liberally so it holds its shape. Do not comb or brush your daughter's hair after removing the curlers. Another option is small or medium size hot rollers, also available at Long's. These work fairly quickly, but unless you have a lot of rollers you'll need to do the hair in two or three batches. Shari can show you how to use the rollers. It's a good idea to do a trial run with the hair a few days before the performance, especially since what works depends on hair length, thickness, and natural curliness. For more hints and pictures, check here. The hair is also done really nicely on the three girls in the picture below.


     Makeup should be minimal---these are very little girls, after all! Use a bit of lipstick and blush, so your child won't look washed-out on stage. Light mascara is also ok for children with very light lashes.
      NO JEWELRY. Remove watches, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings. Even small metal earrings glitter distractingly in the stage lights. Worse, if an earring should fall out onstage, a pointe dancer could injure herself by slipping on one of the pieces.
     Once the girls finish their dance, the backstage parents will remove their dresses and pantaloons during the long (over an hour) wait for the bow at the end of the show. Each girl should have her own leotard on, and can bring a shirt or sweater to wear over it if she might get cold. You may also want to send quiet activities for this time.
     Some parents bring food that all the children can share backstage, mainly healthful snacks like bagels or fresh fruits and vegetables. If you want to send something, either for your child or to share, make sure to avoid anything that stains. Chocolate, nuts, and anything sugar-coated are absolutely not allowed: chocolate stains, some of the dancers are very allergic to tree nuts, and sugar crystals can stick to costumes and glitter.
      Party girls are on stage at the beginning of the first act and often do a quick review of their dance onstage during the half-hour before the show starts. They cannot be late! Please have your child at the theater one hour before the performance time. Replacements will be called in for any dancers missing 45 minutes before show time.

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